idol worship

One of the most amazing passages in the bible is in 2 Kings 23 where King Josiah is told about the book of the law, discovered after many years of loss.  As the book was read to him he realized they were in trouble!  They had wandered from God, from his word, from his love and set up idols and worshipped other gods.  

It was so bad that they had set up idols to other gods in the Temple of God!  That amazes me to realize how far they had wandered from God.  When Josiah heard the words of the book he tore his clothes and set about correcting their mistakes.  He ordered the priests to remove the idols from the temple. It took them a number of days!

How easily we let idols sneak into the temple of God to steal our worship and love from God.  The temple of God today is not a building, a structure, but it's me....it's you.  Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 6 that WE are now the temple of God!  We are now the place where the Spirit of God sets up his throne.

But I must admit I easily set up other idols.  Far too easily I allow little idols to take a place in my life and capture my attention and worship.  I could list a number of them for us to discuss, but may I focus on just one?

My biggest idol, the one I have allowed a place in the one place that God says is his temple, is ME.  I have erected an idol to ME!  I celebrate it daily. I bow to it and say "yes" to its wishes.  I obey this idol more often than I obey God!

Our culture is no help at all.  As my friend, Paul, wrote recently, the news media does all it can to get us to worship the idol "ME".  They tell us "ME" deserves it.  And so we bow.

Hello, my name is Mike and I'm an idol worshipper....and sadly the idol I love the most is "ME".  

Like Josiah I am constantly on a quest to clear out the idols from the temple of God and make it a place where only God is worshipped.  It's a daily quest and the word of God constantly helps me see the little idols I have allowed in my life that will grow into big idols far too quickly.

Lord, help me see the idols I worship that distract me from you.  Give me a passion to destroy them all and worship you alone.

To be honest the idol called "ME" is a pathetic god and the sooner we destroy it the better.  But it's hard.  "ME" will fight back, but to be a worshipper of the one true God is worth the struggle.